So Long, Farewell...

Hi, friends! Just wanted to pass on a VERY important announcement. As of today, April 5, 2017, I will no longer be posting to this blog and will be posting EXCLUSIVELY at my other blog, PerseveringStar which you can find and follow HERE. I spent over 24 hours trying to merge the two blogs according to the little bit of information I could find on Google Blogger to no avail. It did literally NOTHING. So, alas, this blog will remain for archival purposes but again, there will be NO further posting on this blog, only on the other, which I hope you will follow/subscribe to/whatever the terminology is for this type of social media (who can keep track?) Thank you for your loyal support and friendship over the years. It's just too complicated trying to maintain two blogs and since I am streamlining into the PerseveringStar "brand" (for lack of a better word), that blog will prevail.

Please check out the other blog! It has tons of poetry and "stuff" about my personal life and will also be where I post my beauty reviews from now on, along with on my YouTube channel, also conveniently called PerseveringStar and available to subscribe to HERE.

Much love,
Kari

Review - Sally Hansen Miracle Gel in Aqua Chakra

Hi, friends! Long time, no write! (I know, how cliche is that?) I'm sorry I've been neglecting you but I've been spending an awful lot of time trying to grow my YouTube channel, also called Butterfly's Landing. I am happy to say that in under a year, I've somehow managed to amass over four hundred subscribers which is astonishing to me. I hope if you're enjoying this blog you'll check out my channel, too.

Anywho, here is a GOR-GEOUS polish I received to review for you guys from my friends at Sally Hansen. It is from their AMAZING Miracle Gel line and it's called Aqua Chakra. Feast your eyes:

As you could probably guess, I am in LOVE with this color. Hello, Sally Hansen? Check! Amazing wide brush? Check! Fabulous reliable formula? Check! Sky blue? Check! They hit it out of the park with this one, one of my top five favorite Sally Hansen polishes EVER, without question.

Check out their website HERE for more information on this and their entire Miracle Gel line. Please note, I used two coats of polish and one coat of their Miracle Gel top coat in the above pic.

Thanks to Sally Hansen for providing me with this free product to review for you guys! Trust me, you'll love it!!

Press Release - Rimmel London "Get The Look" App!

This holiday season, turn to Rimmel London's newly launched “Get The Look App” to create and try on various holiday looks.  This is the perfect way to virtually try on different holiday trends with the click of a button.  From Rimmel's beautiful bold red lip colors to their metallic eyeshadows and volumizing mascaras, there are so many options to create a stunning holiday look.    Utilizing groundbreaking technology, the app allows each user to “try on” beauty looks from anywhere—the red carpet, an ad in a magazine, or her makeup beauty-savvy friends—and then directs her as to how to recreate it using Rimmel London makeup. Simply snap a picture of a look you’d like to steal and watch it appear on your face in a real-time, selfie-style video. If you like what you see, the app provides a list of Rimmel London makeup to reconstruct the look yourself, giving you the option to click and buy exclusively via Amazon.com.  The app makes recreating your favorite holiday looks simple, but the technology it uses is anything but. Rimmel London Get The Look is the first augmented reality app to reproduce a make-up look with highly accurate color, shape, and texture simulations in real-time. Our cutting-edge, patented face-tracking and visualization technology follows each user’s movements in 3D, so your desired makeup look appears on your face convincingly, accounting for a change in face, eye and lip shapes from the snapped picture. Link to Get The Look App- (I haven't tried this yet, guys, but I'm really excited to! Doesn't it sound like fun?) xo, K

Sally Hansen Miracle Gel - Fall 2016

*PRESS SAMPLE*

Hi, friends! I know, its been a while! I apologize, I've actually been more active on my YouTube channel, lately, which you can find HERE if you so desire. I'm doing beauty reviews there, as well as vlogs, collectible unboxings and much more. The blog will remain, I'm just focusing more on growing the channel right now.

Anyway, I have some new pretties from Sally Hansen's Miracle Gel line to show you today. I received three colors to review as well as the coordinating top coat, the second step in the two step system. Let me get right to the pics:

This shot features two coats of Stilettos & Studs on all but my ring finger and two coats of Game of Chromes on my accent nail. All are topped with one coat of the Miracle Gel top coat.

This shot features two coats of Rock On, followed by one coat of Miracle Gel top coat.

Overall, this is a bit of a mixed bag for me. I LOVE the Miracle Gel brushes, wide and easy to control, the same ones used in Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure. Stilettos & Studs, which is a charcoal-y chrome with a bit of shimmer, is gorgeous and right up my alley. Game of Chromes (how great is that name) was a surprise for me. I did not expect to love it as I'm more partial to cool-toned chromes (re: grey, silver, platinum) than gold but I actually really adore this polish! They were both nice and opaque in two coats. The top coat works like a charm and I had the top mani for at least a solid week before I noticed any tip wear and NO chips aside from that. YAY! I just applied Rock On moments ago (yes, I'm typing with "damp" nails) but so far, not really loving it. I'm not a big fan of "grainy" textures in polish and this one definitely falls into that category. But, we shall see, it might grow on me.

*The polishes used in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. As always, all opinions expressed are solely and completely my own.

Influenster Revive VoxBox - August 2016

Hi, friends! Today I'd like to share some information about the Revive VoxBox I received today from Influenster. I received this box free for testing purposes. It contains several items to help me improve my health and appearance this summer. Here's a pic!

The contents of this box include:
The Vitamin Shoppe Protein Powders
Hills Bros., Chock Full o' Nuts and Kauai Coffee Pods
SheaMoisture Fruit Fusion Coconut Water Weightless Shampoo and Creme Rinse
SnackWell's Biscuit Thins
Bodytech Shaker Bottle

I'm really excited to try out these products and I'm especially thrilled about the shaker bottle. (Yay! It's blue!) I'll be sure to let you guys know my thoughts!

Sally Hansen Miracle Gel - July 2016

*PRESS SAMPLE*

Hi, friends! First of all, I apologize for my long absence. I've been embarking on a whole new Butterfly's Landing adventure...YouTube! It seems that some folks prefer videos to reading and I, of course, would like to share with as wide an audience as possible, so I'm adding that to my repertoire. While I will continue to write here (as writing is my first love. Well, after my husband...and mom...and cats...and friends...you get the gist), I would LOVE it if you would subscribe to my channel as well. Just click right HERE. 

Now, on to the polish! I received three beautiful shades from Sally Hansen's Miracle Gel line. They are Pink Cadilaquer, Freesia Your Mind and Prince Char-mint (can we talk about how cute those names are?)

Here's a pic!

This is two coats each of Pink Cadilaquer (on my thumb and middle finger), Freesia Your Mind (on my index and pinky fingers) and Prince Char-mint (on my ring finger).

Overall, I am really happy with all three of these polishes. The pink and green definitely needed two coats to even out but I am thrilled to say that I could have gotten away with just one coat on FYM! That is always a huge plus for me. I topped all nails with the Sally Hansen Miracle Gel top coat (step two of their no-light gel system) which they say can keep your mani looking great for up to 14 days. That would be incredible but honestly, if I can get even 7 days wear with the mani still looking good, I'd be quite satisfied. The formula was easy to work with and the wide brushes are perfect for application. Definite winners, all!

*The products featured in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. All opinions expressed are completely my own.

NYC Get It All Lip Color

*PRESS SAMPLES*

Hi, friends! Today I have three amazing new lippies from NYC! This product is called NYC Get It All Lip Color and the shades I received to review for you guys are called 100 PINKdigious, 101 ExceptioNUDE and 102 MOCHAmazing. (First of all, how cute are those names?) Let me get right to the pics!

Here they are, still sealed!

How pretty are these colors?

From left to right, three-stroke swatches of PINKdigious, ExceptioNUDE and MOCHAmazing.

You guys, seriously, I am a smitten kitten! I love these soooo much! The colors are richly pigmented and the formula is soft and creamy like a lip balm. I am thrilled to have these and will definitely have to keep my eyes peeled for other colors. Have I expressed myself clearly enough? I. LOVE. THESE. If you try them, please let me know what you think!

Click HERE to check out all the shades in this amazing collection and find out where they are sold near you!  

*The products featured in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. No financial compensation was given and as always, all opinions are completely my own. 

Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Spring 2016 Pretties

*PRESS SAMPLES*

Hi, friends! Today I'd like to share two gorgeous spring shades from Sally Hansen's Miracle Gel collection. I'll get right to the pics!

Carry On Blue and In My Suitcase

Two coats of Carry On Blue on thumb, index, middle and pinky fingers and two coats of In My Suitcase on ring finger

I really love both of these colors. Carry On Blue is a great kind of robin's egg color and In My Suitcase is a pretty greige (grey/beige). Unfortunately, the blue was a bit patchy even after two coats and I would definitely add a third coat for future wearings. Nevertheless, I'm a sucker for sky blue so I'll definitely get a lot of use out of it.

*The polishes featured in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. All opinions expressed are completely my own.

More FingerPaints Pretties for Spring 2016

*PRESS SAMPLES*

Hi, friends! Today I have some more gorgeous polishes to show you courtesy of FingerPaints. They are part of their Hard as Steel line and they have definitely got some staying power. Take a peek!

 From thumb to pinky, two coats each of I Have the Painters Hues, Lavender Brushstrokes, A P-Ink Mess, Shut the Front Salvador and Ink You Cute! (How fun are these names?)

 On all but ring finger, two coats of Stop! Impasto! and on accent nail, two coats of My Best Self-Portrait

Two coats of Peek-a-Hue (For some reason, this is reading very orange on film. It is actually much more of a red-orange.)

I actually really love the Hard as Steel formula from FingerPaints. They last a long time and with the exception of Ink You Cute!, which was rather sheer, they are nicely opaque in two coats. Stop! Impasto! and My Best Self-Portrait have a nice subtle shimmer and the rest are true creamy goodness.

Overall, the only one I wasn't thrilled with was Ink You Cute! due to the sheerness. My fave is My Best Self-Portrait as I can't think of a similar shade in my collection.

*The products reviewed in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. As always, all opinions expressed are unbiased and completely my own.*

P.S. I now have a YouTube channel! If you wish, I'd love for you to check it out! I'm still brand-new at this but so far, I'm having a blast! 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3KBmjfA9gaBgnQVFVF4ZDA

FingerPaints Pretties for Spring 2016

*PRESS SAMPLES*

Today I have some new polishes from FingerPaints to share with you. I'll jump right to the pics!

FingerPaints Endless Wear in Objet D'Art (two coats)

One coat of Off to Collage (over Objet D'Art)

One coat of I Am So Enameled By You (over Objet D'Art)

The Mural of the Story (two coats) with topper of Umber-ella (one coat) over ring finger

From thumb to pinky, two coats each of Dye-ing to Know, Clay on Words, To the Plinth Degree, Dye-ing to Know, Clay on Words (please note, middle, ring and pinky fingers have a base coat of FingerPaints Neon Base Coat)

Two coats of Dye-ing to Know

So, my thoughts. I was quite pleased with Objet D'Art. I've had nothing but great success with the Endless Wear polishes from FingerPaints and this one was no exception. 

I'm generally not a fan of glitter top coats as they tend to be thick and rough on the nail. Not so with Off to Collage and I Am So Enameled by You, both of which dried relatively smoothly and had great even glitter dispersement. So happy with these! 

I also really dug Dye-ing to Know (which is why, after swatching for the second to last pic, I did a whole mani with this color). Great coverage with an almost matte finish.

On to the polishes that I was less thrilled with. The Mural of the Story, while a gorgeous color, was still a bit patchy after two coats. Not a deal-breaker but kind of a bummer. 

The neon base coat did make the neons pop a bit more but it was patchy as could be, even after applying the orange and yellow over it. 

Neons are really tricky and I was not overjoyed with the performance of Clay on Words and To the Plinth Degree. On my index finger in the above pic where the neons were featured, I applied Clay on Words without the white base coat and it was still patchy so I wasn't really happy.

Overall, the only polishes I didn't love were The Mural of the Story, Neon Base Coat, Clay on Words and To the Plinth Degree. The ones I did love were Objet D'Art, Off to Collage!, I Am So Enameled By You and Dye-ing to Know. 

I'd love to hear your thoughts if you give these a try!

*The polishes featured in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. As always, all opinions are unbiased and completely my own.

Rimmel London and NYC New York Color Lippies!

*PRESS SAMPLE*

Hi, friends! Today I have some pretty lippies from Rimmel London and NYC New York Color to share with you. They are from new-to-me lines, Rimmel London Lasting Finish Lipstick by Kate (as in Kate Moss) and NYC New York Color Expert Last Matte Lip Color. Take a peek!

First up, the "Kates" in 041 Pink Nude and 045 Rose Nude (how adorable is that packaging), then the "Mattes" in Noho Matte Nude and Bowery Matte Berry.

Swatches in same order as above.

I've got to say, I was quite pleased with all four of these for different reasons. The Rimmels for their soft, moist texture and the NYCs for their amazing pigmentation and staying power. Depending on one's mood, they are great for a more subtle or vibrant look and I was happy with each of them.

*The products featured in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. All opinions expressed are unbiased and completely my own.

NYC New York Color Lovatics by Demi and More!

*PRESS SAMPLES*

Hi, friends! OMG, it is 2016. How is that possible? Anyway, I have some fun new(ish) products from NYC New York Color to share with you today. Most of these items are from the new Lovatics by Demi line. Yes, Demi Lovato is now collaborating with NYC, don't you love it? I don't love all her music (though I dig some) but I do love and respect her as a person. Her ability to be open and honest about her struggles is something I truly appreciate. I have posted a ton about this on my former blog (Persevering Star) but I don't think I have shared on this one. I suffer from mental illness. I was diagnosed with depression at age 18 but I have battled with it all my life. I think the world will be a much better place when everyone can be as open about sharing (and supportive in accepting) disorders of the brain as we are disorders of the heart, liver, kidneys, etc. But, I digress. On to the pics!

Pictured above are Smooth Skin Parfait BB Creme 5 in 1 Instant Matte in 01 Light, Smooth Skin Parfait BB Creme 5 in 1 Bronzed Radiance in 004 Light, Lovatics by Demi Lip & Cheek Tint in 001 Cheeky Pink, Lovatics by Demi Lip & Cheek Tint in 004 Cheeky Berry, Lovatics by Demi Eyebrow Liner in 001 Medium Brown and Lovatics by Demi eye shadow palette in 020 Natural.

Here's the bottom of the shadow palette, breaking down the colors into subsections of Discreet Nude, Glamour Nude and Smokey Nude to assist in creating one's desired look.

Rather than swatch all twelve shades, I figured you could get a nice look at them with the lid open!

These swatches are of the Lip & Cheek Tint in Cheeky Pink followed by Cheeky Berry, the Eyebrow Liner, the Instant Matte BB Creme and the Bronzed Radiance BB Creme.

I'm super-excited to start really playing with these! I'm still a bit of a beginner at makeup (despite my "advanced" age of 42 years - ha) but I know I will have a lot of fun creating looks with these products. I've always had awesome experiences with NYC New York Color products so I'm sure these will be no exception.

If you try these, please let me know what you think! 

*The products featured in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration.*

411 on Holiday Revo Lip Balm!

Hello, friends! I have what I think is some hot scoop on holiday Revos. If you're anything like me, you are OBSESSED with these little spheres of joy. Well, I am happy to reveal that today, at my local Stop and Shop grocery store, I spotted a display full of three Revo holiday scents. They have Candy Cane, Chocolate Mint and Sugar Cookie. Now, you might be thinking "Kari, these are not new scents" and you would be correct. However, to the best of my knowledge, they were previously only available at Walgreens as part of limited edition collections. I happened to have Chocolate Mint from Halloween 2014 and Sugar Cookie from Holiday 2014 but I had never seen Candy Cane until today. Needless to say, I grabbed it right up. Even cooler, they were on sale at 2 for $5.00, down from their usual price of $2.99 each. (Even cooler still, you can buy one item from a "2 for" sale at Stop and Shop and it will still be the sale price. Just make sure you sign up for their free discount card.)
Here's my beautiful new Candy Cane!

Don't be fooled by the CareOne name. This is, in fact, an authentic Revo. They market under several store-branded names such as Well at Walgreens and Beauty 360 at CVS.

This is a great opportunity to add three hard to find scents to your collection or to stock up on backups if that's your thing. 

*This product was purchased by me with my own money.

Rimmel London Keep Calm and Lip Balm

*PRESS SAMPLE*

Hi, everybody! Today I have some lip balms to share with you. I will be showing you three colors from Rimmel London's Keep Calm and Lip Balm collection. I was super-excited to try these for you! The colors I am sharing are 020 Pink Blush (Keep Calm and Kiss), 030 Berry Blush (Keep Calm and Rock) and 050 Violet Blush (Keep Calm and Party).

Here they are in their packaging.

Out of the packaging (aren't they adorable?)

Lastly, swatches of, from left to right, Pink Blush, Berry Blush and Violet Blush

First off, the packaging for these is about the cutest stinkin' thing I've seen in a long time. LOVE it! As you can see from the swatches (on my very fair skin), they are not super-pigmented but after about seven swipes, I got the color you see above. Another downside, for me, is the scent of these, which I found to be slightly floral. I would have much preferred for these to have a fruity scent or be completely unscented. Their fragrance was slightly off-putting. They are reasonably moist though the moisture doesn't last particularly long. I found myself having to reapply quite frequently. I think Rimmel London had the spark of a great idea with these and with a little fine-tuning, they could be a serious hit.

You can find these lip balms at www.rimmellondon.com or at Walmart stores. 

The products featured in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. As always, all opinions expressed are completely my own.

China Glaze Holiday 2015

*PRESS SAMPLES*

Hey there, friends! Today I have another holiday collection to share with you, this one from China Glaze. There are twelve colors in all so let me start with the pics!

From thumb to pinky, two coats each of Wine Down for What?, Peppermint to Be, Son of a Nutcracker, Mix and Mingle and Better Not Pout

 From thumb to pinky, two coats each of Ugly Sweater Party, Bring on the Bubbly, Soiree I Didn't Do It, Don't Get Elfed Up and Brand Sparkin' New Year

From thumb to pinky, two coats each of Coal Hands Warm Heart, Break the Ice (alternating)

To be completely honest, I wasn't a fan of any of the glitters in this collection. They were thick and chunky and just not my personal taste. However, I have one serious LOVE, namely Don't Get Elfed Up, As for the other non-glitters, they are pretty but none are particularly special for me. If Peppermint to Be had been slightly more opaque, it, too, would have been a love. As it is, it's a deep like.  

Head on over to www.chinaglaze.com to see much more from this brand.

The polishes used in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. As always, all opinions expressed are completely my own.

FingerPaints Holiday 2015

*PRESS SAMPLES*

Hello, friends! Today I'd like to share six beautiful new shades from FingerPaints for the 2015 holiday season. Up first, some pics:

From thumb to pinky, two coats each of Romanesque Rouge, Vintage Vincent, Golden Glaze, Romanesque Rouge, Vintage Vincent

From thumb to pinky, same colors as above topped with one coat each of Tinsel & Tidings (thumb), Sterling Sculpture (index) and Be Merry & Sparkle (ring)

Overall, there were some surprises in this collection for me. I expected to absolutely LOVE Vintage Vincent from the bottle. However, as you can see, especially in the first pic, I was left with VNL even after two coats. A serious bummer. I got better opacity from Romanesque Rouge and even Golden Glaze. I was also quite surprised by the excellent coverage I got from each of the glitters. They applied so easily and the glitter dispersement was terrific, especially from Tinsel & Tidings and Be Merry & Sparkle. A mixed bag but overall, a fun collection for the season.

These polishes may be purchased at Sally Beauty Supply or at www.sallybeauty.com

The products used in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. All opinions expressed are completely my own.

NYC New York Color Eye Products

*PRESS SAMPLES*

Hello, friends! Today I'd like to share some pretty eye products from NYC New York Color. I have two NYC Cityproof 24 Hour Waterproof Eyeshadows and two NYC HD Automatic Waterproof Eyeliners. Here's a pic of the swatches:

These swatches, from top to bottom, are NYC Cityproof 24 Hour Waterproof Eyeshadow in Murray Hills Champagne and Brooklyn Mocha. The bottom two swatches are NYC HD Automatic Waterproof Eyeliner in Black and Deep Brown.

These products provide great coverage with very little effort, love that. They are quite pigmented and so easy to work with. I couldn't be happier with any of the four!

*The products used in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. All opinions expressed are completely my own.

China Glaze Fall 2015

*PRESS SAMPLE*

I know. I suck. I am so behind on my posts and for that, I truly apologize. I'm caught up with swatching and photographing but not with writing. And, somehow, in my blondeness, I managed to "lose" a photo where I swatched five new China Glaze polishes. D'oh! (#bloggerprobs) I'm so sorry, friends. However, I will insert a photo as soon as I either find it or get a chance to re-swatch and re-shoot. In the meantime, I do have seven really pretty new China Glaze polishes to share with you. Feast your eyes!

From thumb to pinky, two coats each of China Glaze Gone Glamping, Sleeping Under the Stars, Pondering, Wood You Wanna and Cabin Fever

From thumb to pinky, two coats each, alternating, of Check Out the Silver Fox and Let's Dew It

I'm pretty psyched to say that of these seven polishes, I believe that three could possibly be one-coaters, namely Sleeping Under the Stars, Wood You Wanna and Check Out the Silver Fox. My favorite of the seven is Wood You Wanna (and c'mon, how can you not LOVE that name).  As you may or may not know, I'm not a big fan of glitters but I was actually very impressed with Let's Dew It. It applied easily and I didn't have to resort to dotting it on. It provided nice even coverage and I know I'll wear it a ton.

The "missing" polishes are Free Bear Hugs, Take a Hike, S'more Fun, My Lodge or Yours and Change Your Altitude. Will try to get a pic posted asap. Again, my apologies for its absence.

*The products used in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. All opinions expressed are strictly my own.

Barielle Mirror, Mirror Collection

*PRESS SAMPLE*

Today I'd like to share Barielle's Mirror, Mirror collection. It is comprised of five pretty creams. Here's a peek.

From thumb to pinky, two coats each of Barielle Blushing Beauty, Ribbon & Lace, Pretty Women, Feathered Slippers and Silk Stockings

I am very pleased with all five of these colors. They provided great coverage in two easy coats and shine line nobody's business. My personal favorites are Ribbon & Lace and Feathered Slippers. But, honestly, I can't find a "miss" in this collection.

*The products used in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration.

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Review

*PRESS SAMPLE*

Hello, friends! Today I have three polishes from the Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure collection. As you may know, these polishes are the proud owners of my FAVORITE brushes ever. They are wide and flat and make application a breeze. So, really, these are always a hit with me, presuming the color suits my fancy. Anyway, on to the pic.

From thumb to pinky, Rose Glass, Concrete Jungle, Midnight Affair, Rose Glass, Midnight Affair (two coats each)

For me, these polishes are a mixed bag. Again, the brushes are fabulous. I find they are wonderful to speed application and despite the width, I feel like they give me great control. However, the colors are not all to my particular taste. Rose Glass, still quite sheer after two coats, is sort of "meh" for me. It's just not my type of color. However, if you're into a more conservative look, either for work or your own personal preference, you might want to give this one a try. Concrete Jungle is my favorite of the three. It's opaque and really a true grey, not the "greige" that so many seem to be these days. This is a cooler-toned grey and very vivid, just perfect for my style. Midnight Affair, in spite of being blue, is only my second fave. It's pretty but nothing all that special to me. Plus, it was semi-sheer even after two coats, although this pic may not indicate such. 

Overall, the hit for me out of these three is Concrete Jungle. I highly recommend it!

*The products used in this post were provided for my honest review and consideration. All opinions expressed are completely my own.*